Electro Girl

Have no fear Electro Girl is here! Hosted inside The Butterfly Club down in Little Collins, the one-woman theatrical show depicts the life-long struggle of our protagonist, Lainie Chait, with epilepsy and mental health. To aid her on stage is the wonderfully sassy and delightfully Scottish brain puppet, Nora, a physical manifestation of Lainie’s own inner thoughts. Just to clear things up, the latter isn’t Scottish in any way … she just “likes the challenge”.

Lainie and Nora delve into multiple topics throughout the hour-long show, running along the timeline of their lives and experiences together. This included stories of road kill – no not the dead animals on the side of the road – but her ex-partners and their overall negative impact on her life. The divorce of her parents, and how her overall suppression of guilt brought about mental imbalance. Stories of shame with her illness, along with how she managed to cover it for roughly twenty years before she was forced into the medical system, and the poor care they provided her.

A particular anecdote stood out to me, one about her rising early in the morning after a previous night out and suddenly colliding with numerous fits, or mental misfires, on her way to work. This consequently caused multiple injuries and a rather unwelcome experience with some cowpats, which I best leave out. As poignant and rough as her stories are, Lainie stands confidently on stage, her voice projects to the back. It’s clear to us bystanders that she isn’t looking for pity or sympathy. Her recollections are undercut with laughter and humour, a sign that she’s a survivor.

On top of her own understandings, Lainie and Nora explore the technical side of the human brain, how seizures occur and how to help someone who has suffered through one. A strong gripe that was made throughout the performance was the convoluted manner in which she received professional care and treatment. Whilst she still strongly supports medication and scientific studies, she believed that her doctors – along with many other practitioners – would focus primarily on relieving symptoms instead of causes.

However, it is ultimately the dynamic between Lainie and her brain, Nora, along with their comedic recounting that solidifies this performance. The facts and figures are meaningless unless you have emotional attachment towards them, which is what she’s done in Electro Girl. After watching the play with another one of my friends, we spent the remainder of our night reminiscing on our own poor choices and how to pay better attention to our health. The performance itself was simplistic in nature, with Nora being the main attraction, however it’s the tenderness and witty timing of Lainie that brings a personable element to Electro Girl.

Electro Girl
The Butterfly Club, 5 Carson Place, off Little Collins Street
thebutterflyclub.com/show/electro-girl